ECIPE Lunch Seminar: Agricultural Policy Reform in the US and the EU
As the EU embarks on a fundamental reform of its post-2013 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), a look at the United States may help to find the right way and to avoid dead-ends. There, a new farm bill has been passed in 2008 – after a major battle in Congress and a twofold veto by the president. Robert Thompson, professor at the University of Illinois and past president of the International Association of Agricultural Economists, will compare and relate agricultural policies on both sides of the Atlantic. The presentation will focus on issues of European interest. What can we learn from the US experience with income stabilization programs, given increased volatility of agricultural prices? How is the CAP perceived in the US, and would CAP reform facilitate more liberal policies in the US? What does the economic crisis and the resulting strain on public budgets mean for future agricultural policies? And is the US likely to accept cuts in its subsidy programs to facilitate the conclusion of the Doha Round?